Seed Giant Monsanto Sprouts 22% EPS Gain; Shares Rise

Surging U.S. corn and other crop plantings lifted Monsanto (

) above second-quarter analyst estimates. Wednesday morning the seeds and traits and herbicide maker reported Q2 earnings per share of $2.28, up 22% vs. a year earlier and 16 cents better than Wall Street forecasts. Sales grew 15% to $4.75 billion, above targets for $4.53 billion, with corn seeds and traits sales up 17.5% to $2.82 billion. Monsanto raised full-year EPS and free cash